'Shoot 'Em Up': Lots of violence; no moral high ground

"I’ve never been in anything that’s got this much crazy movie violence in it.”

That’s Clive Owen speaking recently about his new role in “Shoot ’Em Up,” which might be the Oscar nominee’s most audacious role yet, about a deadly ex-commando of few words who takes it upon himself to protect a newborn being pursued by a mysterious army of gunmen. We caught up with Owen in advance of his appearance Friday at Comic-Con.

Q: In the opening scene, you’re delivering a baby while blasting a gun over her leg, over her shoulder, killing guys while you say “push” . . . . What was that like to film?

A: I remember when I first read the script. That’s how it kicks in right from the beginning. I got pitched “Shoot ’Em Up” and honestly thought it isn’t going to be for me. . . . I called up my agent and said, ‘If this guy [writer-director Michael Davis] can pull this off, it’ll be amazing.’ It delivers that kind of thrill, of crazy shootouts.

Q: You said it unashamedly. Some movies take the moral high ground about why they’re showing violence. Not “Shoot ’Em Up.” Here’s this nihilistic guy;, here are some situations he gets into. The bodies start piling up.

A: That honesty was hugely appealing. And also the wit about it. It’s got its tongue firmly in its cheek. It’s got humor all the way through — it’s wild and crazy. Another thing that was attractive: I thought it was fresh. I hadn’t seen anything quite like this.

Q: There are several scenes bound to get people talking. Namely, your sex scene with Monica Bellucci as a lactating prostitute — that’s got to be a movie first — during which you manage to also shoot at least a dozen people dressed in combat armor to death. How logistically complicated was that to shoot?

A: It was tricky. . . .  Michael Davis animated all the action sequences. He storyboarded the entire film frame by frame. In some ways, what we had to do was execute it as close to the storyboards as we could. The whole film has this heightened reality to it. It’s not about making it real. If anything, it’s the opposite.

Q: Let’s make this as over the top — as opposed to realistic — as possible?

A: Exactly. It’s the same kind of thing as when some people commented on the violence in “Sin City.” It’s such an unreal, heightened kind of movie violence, I would argue it bears no relation to real violence that goes on anywhere. When you watch something like “Shoot ’Em Up,” it’s perfectly fine to sit back and watch this. It’s the most fun kind of violence. [Laughs]

Q: What’s your favorite over-the-top action scene in the film?

A: The crazy shootout in the ... apartment. There’s all this forward momentum, and it ends up with me falling down the stairwell shooting all these people. There was something so pure about it. This huge army of guys arrives to shoot him ... and there’s something hugely satisfying about his action that he gets right. He’s always driven, aiming somewhere.

Q: In a lot of ways [the film] plays like a comedy.

A: It is a comedy! I would argue that it is a comedy.

Q: This is your first Comic-Con. Any sense of what you’re in for? A perfect storm of fanboys and geeks?

A: That’s my take on it. . . . This is better than Cannes for the film. They will get it there better than anywhere else. I’m excited to launch the film in a place that feels right.

--Chris Lee

(Photo courtesy New Line)